In the last two weeks, we’ve seen the resignation of the general manager of Bay FC, the firing of the coach of the San Diego Wave, and several accusations of a toxic work culture leveled at former U.S. women’s national team head coach Jill Ellis, currently the president of the Wave.
All of this is happening less than two years after the issuance of the Yates Report, which found that there had been a flourishing culture of abuse and cover-ups on the part of coaches and team officials in the National Women’s Soccer League.
The league was forced to make a number of changes following ugly abuse revelations in October 2021 which affected more than half the teams. Some of the changes were very public, including written regulations on fraternizing between players and team staff, as well as changes in more than one franchise to remove an abusive owner.
But you wonder whether all of this was enough. A damning social media fusillade from former San Diego Wave staffer Brittany Alvarado, alleges that some 30 Wave employees have been fired or quit the staff since 2021.
She also posted her own statement:
[T]he treatment we endured under club President Jill Ellis has been nothing short of life-altering and devastating to our mental health. She has compromised countless lives to advance her narcissistic personal agenda, fostering an environment where abusive behaviors among her subordinates are allowed to flourish.
Wow.
Now, I don’t personally know if all of these 30 resignees left solely because of Ellis’ actions or influence, but it is something that journalists are likely to pounce on. It’s been done before by The Athletic and The Washington Post, and I’m sure that they are working on corroboration already.
